THE MESQUITE TREE
an American tragedy
Manuela gave birth to Fatima at a scared sixteen. Fatima gave birth to Blanca at a love-struck fourteen. Blanca gave birth to Carmel at a desperate sixteen. Carmel gave birth to Destiny at a rebellious fifteen. Now Destiny is an aloof fifteen, and Blanca wants more for her granddaughter than the monotonous life of a young mother stuck in the same small house in South Texas as five generations of her abuelas. Can she change her family’s destiny before there’s another mouth to feed, or is the cycle of poverty too crushing for one woman to combat? Filled with laughter through tears, The Mesquite Tree: an American Tragedy is an intimate examination of the small joys and painful traumas of a far too common family of strong Latina women who, like mesquite trees, find ways to plant their tough roots deep into the desert dirt and flourish in the harshest of conditions.
THE MESQUITE TREE PRODUCTION SHOTS
A workshop production of The Mesquite Tree, an American Tragedy was presented by Teatro Audaz at the Public Theatre in San Antonio from June 30 - July 10th 2022. Directed by Vanessa Rae Lerma and starring Cindy Rod Martinez, Elise Lopez, Laura T. Garza, Anastacia Islas, Elizabeth Ramirez, and Alejandra Wagnon.
This workshop production was produced by Teatro Audaz in 2022. Directed by Vanessa Rae Garcia, with Celeste Lozano (Assistant Dir & Costumes), Larry Martinez (Lighting Designer), Esther Burton (Scenic Designer), and Axa Soria (Sound Design). The Mesquite Tree, an American Tragedy stars Teatro Audaz artistic director Laura T. Garza, with Cindy Rod Martinez, Elise Lopez, Anastacia Islas, Elizabeth Ramirez, and Alejandra Wagnon.
THE MESQUITE TREE @ THE PGE
Pictures of the cast who took part in several developmental readings of The Mesquite Tree at the PlayGround Experiment in 2019-2020.
A short excerpt from an early draft of The Mesquite Tree at the PGE Virtual Volumes. Excerpt starts at 47:47.
Another short excerpt from an early draft of The Mesquite Tree at the PGE Virtual Volumes. Excerpt starts at 55:57.
THE MESQUITE TREE @ INDIANA UNIVERSITY
Pictures of the cast who took part in a fully staged reading of The Mesquite Tree at Indiana University in 2021.
Directed by Lauren Diesch
DEVELOPMENTAL HISTORY
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National New Play Network, Showcase of New Plays (2024)
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Theatre Audaz, Workshop Production (2022)
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Indiana University, Dev. Workshop (2022)
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Indiana University, Staged Reading (2021)
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The PlayGround Experiment, Staged Reading (2021)
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The PlayGround Experiment, Developmental Readings (2019)